Sore thumb: other side of the lens

I formerly worked for a small NGO committed to alleviating rural poverty. This photo of my earnest, young, self surrounded by folks who’ve lived through decades of civil war, frankly, makes me cringe.

The photo below is the much more “glamorous”-“noble poor” shot typically found in Nat Geo and NGO fundraising web-sites. The picture looks “romantic,” but the author, who snapped this picture, (and five or so Western colleagues) were still there collectively sticking out like sore thumbs.